“And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,’ then he adds, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’ Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.’ “
–Hebrews 10:15-18
Maundy Thursday is the fifth day in Holy Week, and commemorates the institution of the Lord’s Supper. On the night Jesus was betrayed, he sat with his disciples in the upper room, and he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take, eat. This is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” Then he took the cup, and when he had given you thanks, he gave it to them saying, “Drink from this, all of you; for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins; do this, as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.”
The word “Maundy” originates from the Latin word mandatum meaning “command.” In the vulgate, John 13:34 renders as “Mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos” (“I give you a new commandment, That ye love one another as I have loved you”).
Christ Church NYC will be holding its Maundy Thursday service at 7:00pm on April 13th. (Directions here.) All are welcome.
A Prayer for Maundy Thursday: “Almighty Father, whose dear Son, on the night before he suffered, instituted the sacrament of his body and blood: Mercifully grant that we may receive it thankfully in remembrance of Jesus Christ our Lord, who in these holy mysteries gives us a pledge of eternal life; and who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”
Thoughts for Reflection:
“There are two things from which our weak human nature shrinks—pain and shame. Christ came to take both from us, and this He did by accepting both in His own person—when, for instance, not to mention other occasions, He was condemned to death, and to a most shameful death, by wicked men.
– Bernard of Clairvaux
“He left His Father’s throne above, /So free, so infinite His grace; / Emptied Himself of all but love, / And bled for Adam’s helpless race: / ’Tis mercy all, immense and free; /For, O my God, it found out me.
– Charles Wesley
“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
– Colossians 1:19–20